Walking the Talk with Second Step

“These are the same skills we need at elementary school, high school, at college, and in life.”

Crystal Bell, Principal, Ella Flagg Young School

Social-emotional learning (SEL) is helping the students of Chicago Public Schools develop the skills they need to succeed both socially and academically. As the district recently faced the closure of 49 schools, SEL has been used to calm feelings about the subsequent upheaval and reshuffling of students. And one of the SEL tools they’re using is Second Step.

Marcus Garvey Elementary, commended by leadership as a model for social-emotional learning in the district and applauded for helping children develop empathy and problem-solving skills, was granted an eleventh-hour reprieve from the closure list. And the schools taking in the students from the closed schools are teaching Second Step schoolwide to help ease the transition.